Arista Networks, Inc. $ANET Shares Acquired by Deepwater Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Deepwater Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Arista Networks by 7.8%, owning 153,013 shares valued at approximately $11.85 million, making it the firm's 13th largest holding.
• Arista Networks reported a 30.4% increase in revenue year-over-year, with earnings per share of $0.73 for the latest quarter, exceeding expectations and contributing to a strong financial outlook.
• The company has authorized a $1.5 billion stock buyback plan, signaling confidence from its board that the stock is undervalued.

Deepwater Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET - Free Report) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 153,013 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,083 shares during the period. Arista Networks comprises approximately 5.0% of Deepwater Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Deepwater Asset Management LLC's holdings in Arista Networks were worth $11,855,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. HighMark Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Arista Networks by 179.7% in the 1st quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 358 shares of the technology company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its stake in Arista Networks by 381.5% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 260 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in Arista Networks by 415.7% in the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 263 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the period. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Arista Networks in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in Arista Networks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 82.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ANET has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Arista Networks from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $151.00 target price (up from $119.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Arista Networks from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $115.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $112.00 price target on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $138.07.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ANET traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $137.99. 5,095,961 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,561,113. Arista Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $59.43 and a twelve month high of $141.99. The company has a market cap of $173.43 billion, a PE ratio of 54.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.37. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $109.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.99.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.08. Arista Networks had a net margin of 40.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 30.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arista Networks announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 6th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arista Networks news, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 1,785,165 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.22, for a total value of $243,175,176.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 5,698,074 shares in the company, valued at $776,191,640.28. The trade was a 23.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,767,742 shares of company stock valued at $714,048,068. Insiders own 3.54% of the company's stock.

Arista Networks Profile

Arista Networks, Inc engages in the development, marketing, and sale of data-driven, client to cloud networking solutions for data center, campus, and routing environments in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. Its cloud networking solutions consist of Extensible Operating System (EOS), a publish-subscribe state-sharing networking operating system offered in combination with a set of network applications.